Suffering
by HippierJ
Summary: Winry is watching Ed as he suffers from the Equivalent exchange laws, but is he really the one suffering? An alternate ending to the series. Winry x Ed. Rated T just in case
1. Chapter 1

My Idiot

Summary

Winry is watching Ed as he suffers from the Equivalent exchange laws, an alternate ending to the series. Winry x Ed

Disclaimer

I do not own FMA and never will

Two years. Two years since he started developing the symptoms. He insisted he was fine. What a lie it was, and we actually believed him.

_Al, Ed and I were enjoying a terrific dinner at the finest restaurant in town, to celebrate the returning of Al's body, and all of the abilities, such as sleeping and eating, that came with it. While we were eating, Ed scrunched up his face and excused himself. He stood up, and walked from the table. After a while, he started coughing harshly into his fist. We rushed over to him and saw tiny specks of blood covering his face and asked whether he was alright. He said he was. We believed him and continued eating. It was a terrible lie._

Winry remembered what he looked like in the hospital, her friend, her lover, her idiot. He looked so frail, so sunken in his hospital bed. What happened to the Ed she knew? The Ed that would refuse to sit still, who would scream at the top of his lungs when called short, who would survive anything thrown at him. Winry remembered the day when Ed's condition became worse than just coughing. It was 1 and a half years ago.

_Ed and Al were arguing about something trivial, one of those brotherly, friendly fights. Ed was storming out of his room, and started down the stairs. He had obviously lost against his more logical, calm brother. Again. Suddenly, Winry heard a thump followed by a series of bangs and thumps. She called for Grandma Pinako to help. When they arrived at Ed's landing spot, we saw a distraught Al crouching over his unconscious brother. A pool of blood was gathering at Ed's head. I ran for Dr. Knox. He examined Ed, gave a quick, shocked face that lasted no more than a second. He insisted Ed needed to go to the hospital for professional care. We agreed without hesitation._

Winry remembered the doctors swarming in and out of the "Intensive Care" room. They told us that Ed did not merely slip on the stairs-he had collapsed because of momentary heart and lung failure. Something big was going on. The doctors refused to tell us what was wrong. They said we would panic. How right they were.

_Ed had woken up, and was back to "normal". He threw back bottles of milk at the nurses, shrieked at somebody who related anything to "short" or "tiny". When Ed and I were alone, he turned surprisingly quiet and fidgety. He asked me to see whether there was something under his mattress-something was quite uncomfortable. I searched under his mattress, quite annoyed at him for asking me to do something he could quite obviously still do easily. Muttering and complaining, I lifted the mattress. There was a solid gold engagement ring with a single, pure diamond in it. I shrieked and dropped the mattress, forgetting that Ed was on it. A small grunt was heard and I quickly apologised. I was hugging him and accepting the proposition while he started gasping for breath. His lung must have malfunctioned again. I performed CPR without the previous awkwardness that it held before, and his breathing was back to normal. It was the happiest day of my life._

That happiness did not last long. Ed demanded to be released for a week to spend time with me. We were a normal couple for a while, until Ed's health started spiralling downwards again.

_Ed was lying in bed, when suddenly, he started coughing roughly into his fist, and could not regain precious, precious air. I ran into the room to see Ed panting and gasping for breath, and he was running an extremely high temperature. He was rushed into hospital and put on an IV. The doctors finally explained what was wrong. His internal organs were all shutting down. I started crying and I couldn't stop crying. My Ed was about to die. I stormed into Ed's room and demanded to know why this was happening. He let out a chuckle. It was ghastly- it was a shell of his usual laugh. He explained it all. _

"_Equivalent exchange. I had to give something up to return my brother to his normal state. I suggested my other leg and my other arm. God demanded more. So I gave him my life span," he told me. I threw a spanner at him for his response. He just smiled sheepishly._

Three days ago, Ed started coughing and spitting out blood, and this time, I couldn't force some air into his body. I had to call a nurse instead, and I felt so useless. Then a big problem arose. The nurses couldn't get him to breathe either. His heart rate was slowing as was his breathing. His fever started to skyrocket. He knew he didn't have much time left. With the last of his energy, he wheezed to me, "Winry…I..I love y..you…" and with that, the IV flat lined.

Ed's funeral was a grand one. Colonel Mustang and the army paid for all expenses. There was a grand funeral march then Al used alchemy to produce an everlasting rose. I was in hysterics throughout the whole ceremony. When everyone had left, I threw a lily onto the grave and whispered, "I will always love you Ed," and a whisper in the wind replied, "I will always love you too".

This was my first fanfic, please go easy on me! R&R!


	2. Announcement

**Announcement**

Well, this fic looks just about done. However, if you would like, I can make another chapter, like what life is like after Ed's funeral, the story in Al's POV, or something. So, if you would like me to actually do another chapter, pm me or give a review about your idea. If I get nothing, I will do nothing to this fic.

~HippierJ


	3. Chapter 2 After

Hi! So, I've had a lot of requests for Ed's POV, but I think that first, what Winry does should be first, because of, well, chronological order. Don't worry though; I will get to Ed's POV eventually.

Disclaimer-Do not own, and will never ever own.

Suffering- Aftermath

Days passed. Weeks passed. Months passed. Maybe even a year. However, time was no longer a concept to Winry. She would wait for as long as it took, as long as it took for him to come back. He would definitely come back. He was invincible.

Winry couldn't comprehend why people were always crying. Al would never talk, hiding in his room for hours on end. Muffled sobs would radiate from his room, sobs filled with anguish. He no longer wanted his body-if this was the only path that would lead to this 'success'. Pinako smoked more than what was necessary, filling even the living room with the foul stench of tobacco, even if doctors and scientists had proved it to be dangerous. Pinako needed a relief for sadness after all. Mustang had left his title in the dust. He migrated to Xing to live a farmer's life. Riza had followed him. To them, Ametris had too many memories of their 'son'.

Winry just didn't understand them. There was nothing to be sad about, was there? It wasn't like somebody had died. Ed was just missing again, probably researching Xing alchemy. She had made a dozen automail arms and legs, after all, if Ed reappeared with a trashed limb, she had to be prepared, didn't she?

(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((o)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

If there was a time to be anxious, it was now. Despite their grief, Al and Pinako was very worried about Winry. She had locked herself inside her room, locking the door and windows, making automail over and over and over again. They had to make Winry realise the truth-Edward wasn't coming back. Ever.

((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((o)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Well, this was just plain weird. Al and Pinako had called Winry into the dining room for what they called a "friendly chat that was supposed to assure she was in her right state of mind". Somehow, Winry didn't really think that the topic was very friendly.

"Winry dear, you do know that Edward is…" started Pinako.

"Is…gone to Xing to collect information about their alchemy? Yeah, I know. He's such an alchemy freak!" Winry chuckled.

"Erm, Winry? Edward is…Edward is…d-dead." Al whispered in a barely audible voice.

"What do you mean he's dead? I mean, he's just gone to Xing. He couldn't die from that could he?" replied Winry. She didn't really like where this was going.

"No, he hasn't gone to Xing, Winry. He died. He died because he got Al's body back, and his internal organs just, went. Remember? He was coughing up blood?"

Winry thought back. She did faintly remember being worried about the little pipsqueak.

"Well, if Ed died, I would remember, right?" reasoned Winry. She was starting to see the truth, and lose hope.

"Fact is, I think that you shut yourself from the truth. You didn't want to accept Edward's death, so you started to believe that he just went away for a trip, darling" replied Pinako.

It all started to come back to Winry. Edward HAD been coughing up blood. He HAD been to the hospital in critical condition. His organs HAD been shutting down. And…Edward DID die.

A drip of water? Winry felt a drip of water fall down her face and onto her pants. And another. And another. Where was all this water coming from? Then, she realised she was crying. Tears came, one after the other, cascading down her face. Winry realised that the impossible had happened. Edward had died.

(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((o))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Winry was visiting Ed's grave. A sign of respect-and just proof of Ed's death. She really did not want to believe it though.

(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((o)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Winry woke up beside the tombstone. She must have fallen asleep. Winry looked up, and there, leaning on the tombstone, was a smirking pipsqueak with gold hair and eyes.

"Ed! I knew you were ali-"

"Nope, sorry Win, but I can only stay here from beyond the gate for a little while. I already spoke with Al, he's finally alright. FINALLY!" cried Ed.

"Well, then, what are you doing here?" asked Winry.

"I just came to help you with my passing over. I mean, you went through such denial that I thought that you may start thinking about killing yourself," chuckled Ed. Now that Winry thought about it, suicide may be a good option….

"Before you start thinking funny things like the mechanic freak you-"

"WHO YOU CALLING A MECHANIC FREAK, YOU PIPSQUEAK ALCHEMY FREAK!"

"WHO YOU CALLING SO SHORT HE CANT BE SEEN UNDER A MICROSCOPE CAUSE HE'S SO SMALL! Ugh, that's not what I'm here for. What I'm trying to say is, don't try any funny stuff. Ok? I'll just see you past the gate when your natural time comes. If you do try to take your life, you don't end up on the part that I'm on, so we can't be together forever, and all that funny, ridiculous lovey dovey stuff. So, I gotta go now. My time allowed by truth is almost up. Ok? Bye!"

And with that, Edward left in a beam of light, with Truth.

Winry was left to ponder what had just happened. She decided to live life as best as she could, both for herself and Ed.

"See you on the other side, Ed"


End file.
